HELENA, Mont. - In a battle of top-20 teams, the No. 18 Lewis-Clark State women's basketball team fell to the No. 8 Carroll College Fighting Saints in a game that came down to the final minutes. After trailing through the first three quarters, the Warriors battled back in the fourth before dropping the contest 61-56.
"I really like how hard our team fights every game," coach Brian Orr said. "We never stop competing, and I don't want to take anything away from Carroll because they dominated the offensive boards, especially when the game was on the line."
Abbie Johnson put LC on the board with a layup to tie the game 2-2 at 8:31. She gave the Warriors the lead just over a minute later with a jumper to put LC in front 4-3. The two programs battled for possession with a combined nine turnovers in the first five minutes as both struggled to maintain a lead.
Jossilyn Blackman knotted the game 8-8 on a pair of free throws and Hailey Turner did the same with a bucket in the final minute of the game to make it 10-10 at the close of the first quarter.
A 3-pointer by Hannah Burland at 7:10 snapped an eight-point run by the Saints to open the second frame. Turner hit a 3 in transition to cut the deficit to 22-18 with under four to play in the half, and Johnson brought the difference to two with an assist from Abby Farmer.
The Saints led 24-20 at the end of the first half.
Johnson brought LC within one with a bucket at the 7:31 mark to bring the score to 27-26, but Carroll remained in control of the contest. Peyton Souvenir hit a 3 as the third quarter closed and the Warriors trailed 42-35 heading into the final 10 minutes.
Turner sparked a run of 10-unanswered with a triple at 9:29. Cali Moscrip capped the run with a 3 of her own to give LC their first lead since the first quarter at 45-44 with 6:10 to play.
The Saints answered back quickly, regaining the lead and holding it for the remainder of the game. They went on to win 61-56.
Turner, Johnson and Blackman led the Warriors with 10 points each, and Blackman led the team in rebounds with seven. Souvenir and Blackman were both 4-for-4 from the free throw line.
The Warriors outshot the Saints 42.5 percent to 37 percent, but turned the ball over 24 times, compared to Carroll's 14, which ended up being the difference maker. The Saints put up 24 points off turnovers.
"I just feel like we beat ourselves tonight. It's hard to beat anyone, let alone No. 8 in the country, when you turn the ball over 24 times," Orr said. "Again, Carroll's defense was really solid all game, but at the same time we need to make better decisions and take better care of the basketball."
"The second half we did a much better job of attacking the basket and getting to the foul line, and we also shot it well," Orr said. "I need to do a better job of getting our team ready to play from the tip off and keep it going for 40 minutes."
With the loss, the Warriors are now 15-5 overall and 5-4 in Frontier play. They continue their road trip on Saturday when they face Rocky Mountain in Billings, Mont. at 2 p.m. PST.
